Dai Mubai's revenge plan: in the bag!

An air of decadent sensuality hung over the Rose Hotel's luxurious suite.

Ma Hongjun lay stark naked between two unconscious twin girls, his bulging belly rising and falling with his snores.

The sisters wore nearly transparent gauze robes, their cheeks flushed an unnatural red.

Dai Mubai walked to the window, not a trace of lust remaining in his golden eyes.

He was fully dressed, as though the earlier debauchery had nothing to do with him.

"Trash."

Dai Mubai glanced at the soundly sleeping Ma Hongjun and scoffed.

It seemed Ma Hongjun had expended quite a bit of energy last night treating his evil fire.

He took an exquisite silver box from inside his clothes. Two red pills lay within.

These were the "extra-strength" pills he had prepared especially for Ma Hongjun.

With their help, Ma Hongjun had unleashed a terrifying barrage of moves earlier, charging in and out seven times until the enemy threw down their helmets and abandoned their armor.

Dai Mubai quietly closed the door, passed through the dimly lit corridor, and reached a corner.

A figure in a black robe suddenly appeared.

"Did you bring it?" the Black-Robed Man asked hoarsely.

Dai Mubai took a Black Card from inside his clothes. "Half the bounty is here. Once the job is done, you'll get the other half."

The Black-Robed Man accepted the Black Card and weighed it in his hand. "The target?"

"Lin Ye, a classmate of mine." A vicious gleam flashed through Dai Mubai's eyes.

"Fine."

Having accepted the job, the Black-Robed Man was about to leave when Dai Mubai said, "Wait. Don't rush to make your move. Once we return from the Star Dou Great Forest, I'll create an opportunity for you."

"Oh? What kind of opportunity?"

Dai Mubai sneered. "That girl by his side cares a lot about him. If we make a little use of that..."

The Black-Robed Man nodded silently at those words, his figure swiftly dissolving into the darkness like smoke.

Dai Mubai straightened his collar, his lips curling into a cruel smile.

He didn't care what Zhu Zhuqing and Lin Ye were up to.

Soon enough, that brat who didn't know how high the heavens were or how deep the earth was would disappear forever.

As for Zhu Zhuqing... he had plenty of ways to make her submit.

Dai Mubai took a deep breath and returned to the room, as though he could already smell victory.

What he didn't know, however, was that after he left the corner, a figure emerged from the shadows.

"I need to get back and tell Lin Ye right away."

Early the next morning, everyone made their way to the Training Ground after breakfast.

"Boss Dai, Fatty, you two..."

Oscar looked in puzzlement at Ma Hongjun and Dai Mubai, who were the last to arrive and looked thoroughly refreshed.

Ma Hongjun gave a lecherous grin and shot Oscar a look that conveyed what words couldn't.

Looking at the two of them and recalling their conversation yesterday, Oscar immediately understood.

"Ohhh, so that's it..."

Oscar lowered his voice as he asked, "Boss Dai, Fatty, what does it feel like?"

"Amazing. When we get the chance, the three of us should go together. What do you say, Boss Dai?" Ma Hongjun nudged Dai Mubai with his elbow.

"Well..." Dai Mubai stroked his chin, a little hesitant.

Oscar, however, didn't agree. Instead, he sneaked a glance at Ning Rongrong out of the corner of his eye.

"Um, Boss Dai, maybe I'd better pass..."

Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun glanced at Ning Rongrong, their expressions showing that they, too, understood instantly.

Ma Hongjun snickered. "You sure?"

Oscar shook his head repeatedly.

"All right, Fatty, stop giving Oscar a hard time." Dai Mubai patted Ma Hongjun's shoulder, then told Oscar, "Let's talk about it after we're back and have had a rest."

Lin Ye paid no attention to their conversation. He simply stood quietly with Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing, waiting for Zhao Wuji to arrive.

He already knew about what Zhu Zhuqing had reported last night.

Since Dai Mubai intended to strike after their return, he would turn the scheme against him. For now, he should give nothing away.

Two and a half minutes later, a figure with a gleaming, smooth head walked into the Training Ground beneath the bright morning sun.

It was none other than Zhao Wuji.

Everyone was taken aback at the sight of Zhao Wuji. Xiao Wu nearly burst out laughing.

"Lin Ye, look."

Ning Rongrong tugged at the hem of Lin Ye's clothes and leaned closer, speaking softly.

Of course, Lin Ye had seen Zhao Wuji too. It was just that the man's current appearance made it hard for him to keep a straight face.

Zhao Wuji was covered in bruises, with dark, swollen patches around both eyes.

It seemed that old geezer Tang Hao had really gone to work.

What Lin Ye hadn't expected was that even though Zhao Wuji had lowered the difficulty of the test and hadn't knocked Tang San unconscious, he still hadn't escaped a thorough beating from Tang Hao.

"What are you staring at? You little brats itching for a beating?"

Seeing everyone's strange looks, Zhao Wuji immediately bristled.

Everyone hastily looked away.

Once they had settled down, Zhao Wuji announced, "All right, Mubai, arrange the formation."

Dai Mubai glanced at Lin Ye, then nodded. "Yes, Teacher Zhao."

A few minutes later, Dai Mubai had assigned everyone their positions.

Tang San was at the front, with Xiao Wu and Ma Hongjun guarding the flanks. Lin Ye and Ning Rongrong were in the middle, with Oscar ahead of them, while Dai Mubai had placed Zhu Zhuqing at the rear beside himself.

Lin Ye had no objections to this arrangement.

He had a more important plan to carry out during this trip to the Star Dou Great Forest, so naturally he wouldn't concern himself with such chicken-feather-and-garlic-skin trifles.

"All right, the formation's settled. Let's move out." With that, Zhao Wuji turned and led the way.

By the time the bright moon climbed into the sky, they had reached a small town less than a hundred kilometers from the Star Dou Great Forest.

"Looks like we won't reach the Star Dou Great Forest today. We'll spend the night in this town."

Before long, Zhao Wuji found a tavern.

The inn was a small, two-story building, with a simple dining hall on the first floor and guest rooms on the second.

"This will do."

Zhao Wuji led everyone into the inn, where quite a few customers were seated.

At the front desk, Zhao Wuji booked a single room for himself and went straight upstairs.

After watching Zhao Wuji go upstairs, Dai Mubai turned to arrange everyone's seating, only to find that Lin Ye, Ning Rongrong, and Zhu Zhuqing had already chosen a table and sat down some distance away.

"Xiao Wu, you and Tang San move that table over here. We'll put them together and sit as a group," Dai Mubai said, pointing at the two tables in front of him.

"Okay."

After answering, Tang San glanced at the three who were already seated and chatting happily, and couldn't help sighing.

He felt deeply helpless about the conflict between those three and Dai Mubai last night.

He was powerless to stop the rift from forming.

If Lin Ye and Ning Rongrong had still had a chance of fitting into their group before, that now seemed unlikely.

I hope that once we enter the Star Dou Great Forest, Boss Dai, Lin Ye, and the others can put aside their personal grudges for a while and keep the bigger picture in mind.